Churn



Patented Oct. 26, 1948 UNITED STATES ATENT QFFlCE a 2,452,492 I Y CHURN Walter Rivers, Coeur dAlene, Idaho Application July 22, 1946, Serial No. 685,472

1 Claim. (01. 259--56) This invention relates to a churn for making butter and it is one object of the invention to provide achurn of such construction that it may be applied to a washing machine of conventional construction and operated b 'a shaft extending vertically in a tub of the washing machine and normall having applied toita device for causing water to. be agitated and driven through clothes in the tub during use of the washing Another object of the invention is to provide a churn wherein its agitator is so mounted that it may be readily removed from the container and all elements of the churn thoroughly cleaned.

Another object of the invention is to provide a churn which may be very easily applied to and removed from a churn of conventional construction and which requires no changes in the washing machine except removal of its agitator from its shaft when the churn is to be used.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a top plan View showing the improved churn applied to a washing machine in position for use.

Fig. 2 is a sectional View upon an enlarged scale taken vertically along line 22 of Figure 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view upon an enlarged scale taken diametrically through the coupling of the churn.

Fig. 4 is a view taken horizontally along line 4-4 of Figure 2.

The washing machine with which the improved churn is used is of conventional construction and has the usual tub I at the center of which is a tubular standard or sleeve 2. The usual shaft 3 extends vertically through the tube 2 and its squared upper end 4 projects upwardly from the tube so that when the washing machine is in use for washing clothes an agitator may be applied to this squared end of the shaft and oscillated in the tub in a horizontal plane about the tube for about one-third of a revolution during rotation of the shaft back and forth in the tube by conventional operating means provided for washing machines of this type but not illustrated in the drawings. It will thus be seen that the washin machine is of conventional construction and that when the improved churn is to be applied, it is merely necessary to remove the agitator of the washing machin from the shaft 3 and then apply the churn to this shaft.

The churn has a container 5 formed of metal and open at its top. The bottom 6 of the container is connected with the lower edge of its walls by a joint I and at its center the bottom is formed with an opening 8 through which passes the upper end portion of neck 9 of a coupling in formed of cast metal. This coupling is formed with an outstanding circumferentially extending flange ll through which rivets I2 are passed to firmly secure the flange against the under surface of the bottom 6 and since the neck 9 fits snugly in the opening 8 a tight joint will be formed and cream poured into the container prevented from leaking downwardly about the coupling. Thecontainer is circular in top plan, as shown in Figure l, and upon the upper edge of its annular Wall rests a spider l 3 having a bearing sleeve M at its center and arms !5 extending radially from the sleeve. Lugs 86 extend downwardly from the arms near their outer ends in position to fit into the container and bear against the inner surface of its wall, and these lugs serve to prevent the spider from slipping out of a position in which the sleeve I4 is directly over the upper end of the coupling. Therefore a shaft Il may be passed vertically through the sleeve and disposed centrally of the container with its lower end seated in a socket I 8 formed in the neck 9 of the coupling.

About the shaft is disposed an agitator l9 having a central sleeve or column 29 and blades 21 projecting radially from the column. The column has its upper and lower ends 22 and 23 welded to the shaft H and when the shaft l1 and the agitator i9 are held stationary and the container oscillated about the agitator cream in the container will be thoroughly agitated and quickly converted into butter. The squared upper end of the shaft 3 fits into a similarly shaped socket 24 formed in the lower portion of the coupling and when the thumb screw 25 is tightened the container 5 will be held in engagement with the shaft 3 and oscillated by movement of the shaft.

In order to hold the shaft it and the agitator l9 stationary while the con-tainer oscillates there has been provided a rod or thick wire 26 formed of resilient metal. This wire 26 is curved longitudinally and its upper or inner end is fitted into a socket 21 extending radially of the bracket 28, a set screw 29 being provided for securing the end of the wire or rod in the socket. The bracket 28 is fitted upon the flattened upper end of the shaft l1 and secured by a thumb screw 30, and when the screw 30 is loosened the coupling will be released from the shaft [1 and the spider l9 may then be drawn upwardly off of the shaft and the agitator l9 withdrawn from the container. The container will then be released from the shaft 3 and the container and the agitator both thoroughly cleaned and sterilized. At its lower or outer end the wire 26 is fitted into the socket 3| of :a clamp 32, where it is secured by a screw 33. The clamp has depending inner and outer arms 34 and 35 which are spaced from each other a distance allowing the clamp to be disposed in straddling relation to the upper edge portion of the wall of the tub I, and at its lower end the outer arm is formed with an internally threaded bearing 36 through which passes a clamping screw 31. When this screw is tightened the clamp will be firmly held to the wall of the tub and the wire or rod 26 firmly held in'pcsit-ion to support the shaft I 1 and hold the agitator l9 stationary while the churn is in use and the container 5 oscillated about the agitator. After cream has been churned and butter formed the screws 31 and 25 are loosened and the churn removed from the washing machine and taken apart for cleaning.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

A churn comprising a container open at its top, means for removably mounting the container upon the upper end of an oscillating shatt, an agitator in said container having a vertical sleeve and blades carried thereby, a rod passing vertically through the sleeve and projecting upward- 1y therefrom, the sleeve being fixed to the rod, said rod having its lower and rotatably mounted at the bottom of the container to permit oscillation of the container relative to the agitator, a. spider removably supported upon said container and formed with a bearing at its center through which the rod loosely passes, a bracket detachably connected with the upper end of the rod, a resilient wire curved longitudinally and having one end detachably connected with the bracket, and a clamp at the other end of the wire for detachably securing the wire to a support.

WALTER RIVERS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,417,885 Bos-sert May 30, 1922 1,682,976 McGinnis Sept. 4, 1928 1,751,813 Hager Mar. 25, 1930 1,772,456 Cole Aug. 12,1930 1,798,219 

